Olivia's Family Thanksgiving
by Cady James
Summary: Olivia gets a big surprise for Thanksgiving.


Title: Olivia's Family Thanksgiving.

Author: Cady James.

Rating: General.

Chapters: 1.

Categories: Family/Children, Friendship, Holiday, Romance.

Pairing: Olivia Benson and David Haden.

Characters: Olivia Benson, David Haden, Cory Haden, Emily Haden, Alex Cabot, Amanda Rollins, Kim Rollins (cameo), Margaret Rollins (cameo), Casey Novak, Christina Novak (cameo), Calvin Arliss, Donald Cragen, Elliot Stabler, Kathy Stabler, Maureen Stabler, Kathleen Stabler, Dickie Stabler, Elizabeth Stabler, Eli Stabler, Bernadette Stabler, John Munch, Odafin Tutuola, Ken Randall (cameo), Melinda Warner, Russell Warner (cameo), Sasha Warner (cameo), Nick Amaro, Zara Amaro, Rosa Amaro (cameo), Simon Marsden, Olivia Harrison-Marsden.

Summary: Olivia gets a big surprise for Thanksgiving.

Author Notes: Thought this would be perfect for Olivia's sanity and perfect for this holiday. Also, the characters Cory and Emily Haden, Margaret Rollins, Christina Novak, Russell and Sasha Warner, and Rosa Amaro are made up names. We know that David has kids, Amanda and Kim have a mother, Melinda has a husband and daughter, and Nick's mother has appeared in the show, but we never knew their names. As for Christina Novak, that name and character are made up for this story. Oh, and in this story, Ken Randall is not with his fiancé. Nothing against him, just can't remember the guy's name. Disclaimer: _Law & Order: Special Victims Unit_ does not belong to me; neither do the characters. They belong to NBCUniversal and Dick Wolf, and one of the most amazing casts ever assembled on television.

SVUSVUSVU

It was the day before Thanksgiving and everyone was rushing around, picking up last minute items for their dinner/football parties or heading off to various relatives. Even the detectives of the Special Victims Unit had their places to be. Captain Don Cragen had even decided to let his top detectives take a much-needed couple days off – on call, of course. Other detectives in the unit took over for the two days.

Nick Amaro's wife was busy in DC and sent Zara to her father for the holiday. The father and daughter were spending Thanksgiving with Nick's mother.

Amanda Rollins' mother, Margaret had come up from Atlanta to spend Thanksgiving with her two daughters. Amanda knew this wasn't going to be a calm holiday.

Odafin Tutuola was spending Thanksgiving with his newly-single son. Ken Randall and his fiancé had broken up months earlier from problems stemming from his fiancé's attack last Spring.

John Munch was going to spend Thanksgiving with his brother Bernard, but something had come up and John was told not to come. He knew his brother was having marital issues and figured that he and the wife were fighting again. John didn't want to spend another Thanksgiving listening to the pair scream at each other.

Cragen decided to work on Thanksgiving Day, itself, just in case. But he decided to take off the day before and spend some quality time with his sister before she and her husband and daughter went off to see the husband's parents.

Olivia Benson had decided on working for Thanksgiving Eve and Thanksgiving Day. She knew everyone's plans and she was happy they had someone to spend the holiday with. Liv's only family was her half-brother and his daughter, and things were too complicated for her to want to spend the holiday with him. It would have been fine, except Simon was fighting with his ex-fiancée over visitation with his daughter Olivia. He was entitled to visitation rights but Tracy was denying him. Knowing it was a family holiday and there was drama, Olivia decided not to get involved.

But, her plans of working were halted when Cragen found out and all-but-ordered her to take the two days off. He told that she didn't have to outright celebrate the holiday if she didn't want to. He explained that it could be a mini-vacation; just relax and do nothing for forty-eight hours and come back to work on Friday reenergized.

After an initial argument, Olivia begrudgingly obeyed Cragen's insistent order and finished some paperwork before heading out for the night.

When she woke up on Wednesday, Liv had planned her day. Breakfast and then a little jog around the area to begin with. After, she would head to the local grocery store and see if she could scramble up a personal Thanksgiving dinner for herself. When the shopping was over, she wanted to maybe stop by the precinct to see if she could get any work done. Cragen wasn't going to be there so he would never know that she was disobeying an order. When work was finished, Liv would go back home and make herself a little meal and prepare for "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" (**AUTHOR NOTE: When I started writing this story, I did check on the ABC website and saw that it was on.**). That was her plan.

Breakfast consisted of old Pop-Tarts® and a glass of milk with an expiration date of six days ago. Then, Liv had gotten dressed in a pair of black sweat pants, running shoes, and an oversized NYPD sweatshirt and headed out. When she got back, she had decided against the planned shower and took a long, soothing soak in her tub. It was relaxing and calming.

About an hour and a tiny little nap later, Liv was dressed in a pair of jeans, black boots, and a purple cable-knit sweater. She grabbed her light coat, as the weather was in the fifties (**AUTHOR NOTE: Via The Weather Channel for Manhattan for Wednesday 11/21.**), and purse and headed out the door for grocery shopping.

The nearest store to her place was almost sold out of the basic Thanksgiving items and they weren't restocking fast enough for the customers' liking, so Liv had to go to a different store. When she got there, she grabbed a cart and started to shop. There was the turkey and stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin/sweet potato pie, mashed potatoes, yams, corn… Hopefully, the store wasn't out of stuff, too. She knew that waiting until the last minute to buy food for Thanksgiving was stupid, but Liv blamed it all on Cragen for forcing her to stay home for the holiday. If she could work, she'd just grab a quick lunch and dinner before going home to sleep.

Twenty minutes later, Olivia had one of the last remaining Butterball® turkeys, two cans of cranberry sauce, Stove Top® Turkey Stuffing, a few pouches of the powdered mashed potato mix, two cans of yams, and two cans of sweet corn. All she needed was the pie/pies; she'd figure out which one when she got to the pie area.

As she turned the cart around a corner, it knocked into the cart belonging to someone coming around the other aisle. Olivia jerked her head up to apologize and/or wait for an apology from the other shopper and froze at the sight of David Haden in front of her.

He stood still and stared at her, too. Neither one could believe, in their wildest dreams, that they would run into each other at the same grocery store at the same time. What were the odds? Olivia knew that he didn't live in the area and could've gone to a store closer to his place, and her local store was out of everything, forcing her to search elsewhere.

"Sorry," David apologized first and moved his cart out of the way for the other shoppers. Liv's cart and knocked his out into the middle of the walkway, making some people stop.

"No, I'm sorry. I wasn't really paying attention," Liv stated.

"Nobody seems to be. It's Thanksgiving; last minute shopping makes people crazy," David replied and the two laughed. Olivia took the opportunity to glance into his shopping cart. He had a pumpkin pie and a sweet potato pie, and a bag of Idaho Potatoes®.

"You don't have a turkey?" she inquired.

"I was just going to go over and get one," he answered.

Liv sighed and smiled at him. "You might be too late. This one," she pointed to her turkey, "was one of the last ones and there was a crowd. If they haven't restocked, you're probably out of luck."

"Damn," David exclaimed. "Oh, well. There's always ham or Tofurkey®. Add seasoning to it, and my kids won't know the difference."

Olivia chuckled. "You're the only parent between us, and you know nothing about children and taste buds. No kid wants to eat a tofu turkey. They'll know the difference. _I_ know the difference."

"Yeah, so a ham… if they still have those."

"Thanksgiving with family?" Olivia pried, feeling a twinge of jealousy that David wasn't with her anymore and he had a family for Thanksgiving.

"Uh… just my kids. My ex has plans tonight with her husband and, tomorrow, they're going to my ex-mother-in-law's. That woman never liked me. So, I get the kids to myself tonight. You?"

"I'm…," Olivia sighed and looked away, trying to stop the tears that suddenly appeared in her eyes.

David took the hint and an idea popped into his head. "Hey, listen. You have almost a whole Thanksgiving meal in your cart and I'm obviously missing some key ingredients here… I don't mean to intrude, and you can turn me down, but… you want to spend Thanksgiving with me and my kids? We can make the food while they go do their own thing."

"I don't want to intrude, David. You need to spend the time with your kids. It's okay… I'm fine on my own," Olivia stated and looked at him. "Really."

"Olivia, I dated you, remember? You're not fine being alone. In fact, I recall a conversation once where you told me you hated to be alone… especially on family holidays. You won't be intruding on my time with my kids. I don't want you to be alone. Please?" David made his puppy-dog eyes at her, trying to persuade her.

She was a sucker for those eyes. Something about him was just so alluring and tempting that it was so damn hard to say no to him. Olivia smiled at him. "Well, I got the turkey, you got my pie."

David's eyes went wide and caught Liv suddenly shutting her eyes and mouth tight, knowing that she just repeated her last statement in her head. She opened her eyes and laughed. "I meant… the pumpkin pie. And, the sweet potato one, too. Not… _that_. Get your mind out of the gutter."

"Yours, too. Sexual innuendos in a public grocery store, Detective?" he said in his sexy voice. "So, you want to come over?"

She smiled at him. "No, I want to you come over. Before I left, I set up my whole kitchen for this. And, I planned on watching 'A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving' on my TV. I have it all planned."

"Okay, we'll go to your place. We just have to pay for this stuff and I got to go pick up my kids," David stated and got a nod from Olivia. He placed the items from his cart into hers and they headed for one of the checkout lines of the grocery store.

SVUSVUSVU

After nearly waiting a half-hour in one checkout lane, they managed to mutually pay for their purchases and left in David's car; Liv had taken a cab from the first grocery store to the second one. They headed to David's ex-wife's place to pick up his kids. Liv stayed in the car and waited. This was actually her first official meeting with his kids; she was kind of nervous.

Olivia got along great with kids. She had a good relationship with Elliot Stabler's kids, and could easily talk to child victims, or victims' children. But, this was different. She had been in a relationship with David and was spending Thanksgiving with him… would his kids be okay with that? With her?

She looked out the window and saw a boy and a girl running toward the car. The boy looked to be somewhere between ten and twelve, while the girl looked about seven or eight. They stopped a couple feet from the vehicle and noticed Olivia sitting in the passenger seat. She could tell, by their faces, that they were confused and unsure of this new development.

David approached the car and told them to get in the backseat and buckle up. When he slid into the driver's seat, he noticed it was completely silent in the backseat. He realized that this was Liv's first time meeting his kids and all three of them found the situation kind of awkward. "Guys, this is my friend Olivia. Say hi," David instructed them.

Both children quietly muttered their greetings and looked at their father, confused. "Liv, these are my kids. My son, Cory; he's twelve… and my daughter Emily – nine years old as of a week ago."

Liv turned to face the children and smiled. "Hey, guys. And, happy birthday, Emily."

The girl smiled shyly at the strange grown woman and then turned her head to stare out the window. Cory looked from Olivia to his father. "Dad, I'm hungry. Can we go now?"

"Yeah, sure. We're going to have Thanksgiving at Olivia's place, okay? David answered.

"Whatever," Cory mumbled and stared out the window on his side of the vehicle.

David and Olivia looked at each other and smiled and thought the same thing, _Kids._ He started up the car and headed off.

SVUSVUSVU

They didn't hit much traffic on the way, except for some minor snags. Once parked, David enlisted his children to help carry groceries. He noticed Olivia was just standing on the sidewalk, looking lost.

"What is it, Liv?" he asked as he approached her.

"You know, when I left the apartment earlier, I could have sworn I saw Munch's car parked outside. But, I didn't think anything about it and kept going. Now, I'm almost certain it's his car, and a couple vehicles down… I'm certain that's Fin's ride," Liv stated.

"Maybe it's relatives of someone who lives in these buildings. You can't be sure it's Fin's car, or Munch's. Come on, Olivia. I think my kids' arms are falling off," he replied and gently nudged her back to the trunk of the car, where their groceries were stored.

As they brought their stuff up to Liv's apartment, David's kids became more social. Olivia mentioned "The Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" special that was going to be on, and Emily perked right up and started going on about it and Snoopy. Cory only made the typical sarcastic-big-brother comments to his little sister.

"You guys can just set the stuff on the floor when we get in, okay. My counter is kind of cluttered. I was trying to find some stuff for the food," Olivia informed and they headed toward the door, but stopped suddenly when she heard voices coming from inside her place and a glimmer of light emanating from underneath the door.

She and David exchanged confused looks. "You have someone in there?"

"No; it was just going to be me, by myself," Liv replied and set her bags down to grab her keys out of her pocket. David put his bags down and placed them near his kids. He made a motion for them to stay where they were and the two adults arrived at the door.

Liv placed her key in its slot and turned and quickly opened the door and both of them stood still at the scene before them. Cory and Emily dropped their bags and appeared around the two to see what was happening.

Olivia stepped inside the now-quiet apartment and gaped at her surroundings. The place smelled like Thanksgiving, most of her living room furniture had been moved and a large table was placed in the middle with lots and lots of chairs to accompany it.

Then, she took noticed of her guests. Cragen was there, along with Munch and Fin. She saw Ken Randall, Fin's son; Nick with Zara and an older woman; Melinda and her husband and daughter; Casey and another redhead with the same facial features; Amanda and her sister Kim, and another woman that shared features with both blondes; and Alex.

"Olivia!" Cragen greeted her and came over to hug her. "Happy Thanksgiving," he stated and faced the crowd.

She looked at him, clearly confused. "Um… what's going on?"

"Well, I know I don't this often… but when you were practically begging me to work on the holiday, I realized that you didn't have anyone to go to. I felt bad that I was sending you home alone on a holiday that's all about family. So, I actually decided this a couple days ago and informed every one of your friends," Cragen explained.

John Munch moved away from the crowd to stand next to her. "I know you say you don't have a family, but you're wrong, Liv. _This_," he motioned at the crowd of people, "is your family. We decided to set this up for you."

Olivia's eyes welled up. She couldn't believe that her friends would do something like this for her. It was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done.

"You know most everyone here, but let us make introductions," Cragen began and motioned toward Amanda. "Amanda brought her sister Kim, and their mother Margaret; Casey and her sister Christina…"

"I see the resemblance," Olivia commented and got a laugh from the group.

"Melinda brought her husband, Russell, and their daughter, Sasha; Nick and Zara, and Nick's mother Rosa," Cragen finished and nodded his head toward Casey, who was standing near Liv's bedroom door. "And, some other people."

The door opened and Simon walked out with his toddler daughter, Olivia. Liv smiled bright and held out her arms. Her brother moved to hug her, almost squishy the little one between them. "Simon? Do Child Services and Tracy know you have Olivia with you?"

"Yes. Your Captain made them a deal for today. It took a lot of convincing to get Tracy to agree to it, though," Simon answered and moved to stand at her side.

The next person to appear was Calvin Arliss. He rushed to Liv and, instead of giving her a big hug, he gave her the typical friendly hug that any teenager would give. "Hey, Olivia!"

"Hey, kiddo! Where are your grandparents?"

"Back home in Vermont. They didn't want to come all the way here. Captain Cragen talked to them and they sent me here," Calvin stated.

"I'm so happy to see you," Liv beamed and wrapped her arms around him tight and hugged him.

"Well, be prepared," the teen warned. "You're about to be really happy… or nervous… or whatever, with the next group coming through the door."

Liv let go of Calvin and stared at the door. He was right. When the next face appeared, her whole body froze. She hadn't seen him in a year and a half. But, there he was, in the flesh, standing in the doorway of her bedroom.

Before Liv could respond, a mini-version of the man, right down to the crew-cut hair, appeared and moved to hug her. "Hey, Olivia, how's it going?"

Liv moved out of her reverie and stared at the young man before her. "God, Dickie. You look more and more like your father every day." She got a scowl from him and smiled. "Yeah, I know. You don't like to be called 'Dickie' anymore. I don't really care, though. You're always Dickie, to me."

"He hates when _we_ call him that," a female voice came from behind him. Liv let go of him and looked around to see both Kathleen and Elizabeth.

"Hey, you guys," she beamed both girls hugged her.

"Happy Thanksgiving," they chorused and moved aside. Maureen, Kathy, and Eli appeared.

Olivia hugged Maureen and looked at her. "You have grown up so much. You, and your sisters, look just like your mother."

"Speaking of…" Kathy stated and gave her husband's former partner a small hug. "Happy Thanksgiving, Olivia."

"Happy Thanksgiving," Liv replied and saw Eli looking up at them. If her math was correct, he was about five years old now. He looked exactly like Dickie when he was that age. "Hey, you. I remember you, little man," she stated and kneeled down to be at his level. "Remember me?"

Eli shook his head no and stared down at his feet. Kathy kneeled down next to him, "Sweetie, she was there when you were born. I told you about this, remember? Mommy was hurt and you wanted to be born at that moment. Auntie Liv was there to hold you when Mommy couldn't. And, she visited us when you were a little younger. You don't remember?"

Eli looked at his mother and then at Olivia and just shrugged and moved to stand by his siblings. Both women stood back up.

They laughed and Liv replied, "I guess I haven't been much of an aunt, have I?"

"He does that with a lot of people now," Kathy explained and then moved over to her children.

Elliot stood there, a few feet in front of her. Next to him was his mother, Bernadette. She was trying to push El closer to his friend, but was unsuccessful.

"So stubborn. I don't understand you; she's your best friend," she commented and moved to hug Olivia. "So great to see you again, Olivia."

"Nice to see you, too, Mrs. Stabler," Liv greeted her and returned the hug.

"Bernie, please. Remember?"

"Yes, sorry. Happy Thanksgiving, Bernie."

"Same to you, honey." Both women looked at Elliot, who was still standing still.

"I expect nothing less out of you," Liv told him.

He irked at that. "What do you mean by that?"

"You're a stubborn ass…," Liv started and stopped herself before swearing in front of all the children present. "You bottle up all your emotions, except for anger. Do I have to do something to get you angry so you'll talk to me?"

"We're talking now," he muttered.

"Not that much," Kathleen stated softly. Given the deafening silence of the room, her comment was heard loud and clear.

Elliot glared at her before turning back to his former partner. "Happy Thanksgiving, by the way."

Liv just stood there, getting annoyed with this awkwardness between. She flashed back to the time she left to work with the FBI. When they had gone out for coffee, during a case, it was uncomfortable and awkward. Neither one of them had known what to say to each other. So much needed to be said then… so much needed to be said now.

She moved out of Bernie's embrace and went to stand closer to Elliot. It only took a moment of staring at each other before they moved to wrap their arms around each other in a tight hug.

Things seemed to click in that one moment. Even though there was a lot that they needed to talk about, it was forgotten in that moment. This connection brought them to who they used to be, before the shootout; when they were partners and best friends.

"Happy Thanksgiving, El," she said softly against him. Olivia missed saying his name like that. It had been too long.

Elliot felt the same way. Hearing the name "El" and her voice saying it took him back and made him realize how much he had missed his best friend.

They eventually let go and stood there, staring at each other – having a silent conversation with their eyes.

Then they heard someone clearing their throat behind Olivia. Everyone turned their direction to Olivia's doorway and saw David and his kids standing there. She moved away from Elliot and headed over, helping the kids unload the grocery bags onto the counter.

"Oh, sorry," she looked up at David. "So sorry, I forgot about you guys for a second."

"It's okay, baby," he stated and got a look from Olivia. He wasn't sure if she was happy or confused when he called her "baby."

She thought it over and decided that since she was spending the holiday with him and his kids, that it was okay that he called her that. Olivia smiled at him and moved to close and lock the door before turning back to the crowd. "Guys, you know David Haden…," she glanced at Elliot and a few others. "Most of you do, anyway. And, these are his kids: Cory, twelve; and Emily, nine. Say hi, guys."

The kids waved and murmured a quiet "hi." The crowded greeted them and David ushered his family inside, taking their light coats from them and sticking them in Olivia's coat closet.

As David took his kids to greet the other guests, Olivia moved to her Captain's side. "So, what's going on, anyway?"

"Like I said, Liv. You were saying that you don't have a family to celebrate with, and that you didn't think you were even going to spend it with Simon… We may have our own families, separately, but… we are a family. _We_ are _your_ family, Olivia. All of us. This idea was mine and Fin's. It was just going to be me, Munch, Fin and his son, Nick and his family, and just Amanda for a small dinner, but we gathered others along the way. Ken thought it would be nice to have others bring their own family along tonight. I helped out with getting Calvin and Simon to come, knowing that would make you happy," Cragen explained.

"What about Elliot?" she inquired.

"That was a twisted turn of events. Munch ran into Kathleen at the store. She mentioned something about her dad missing us and you, and Munch told her the plan. She relayed it back to the family and got them in. She told me when she got here and El was nervous about seeing you. I know, it's been a year and a half since you two last spoke," he finished and they stood there, taking in the scene before them. It was like a family reunion inside Olivia Benson's apartment. Cragen looked over at David talking to Fin. "So, what's happening with Haden?"

"We ran into each other at the grocery store… literally. The grocery store down the street was out of a lot of stuff, so I went to the next one. David happened to be there. His kids are spending tonight with him while his ex and her husband are busy. Tomorrow, they're going to spend the day with her mother, David's ex-mother-in-law. She doesn't like David, and the feeling seems mutual. Anyway, I had most of the food in my cart, except for the pie… David had the pies; sweet potato and pumpkin pie. He didn't even have a turkey, and was seriously considering ham or tofu turkey as an alternative for his kids. We eventually decided to spend tonight together… for dinner," Olivia explained.

Cragen smiled at her. "Like a family Thanksgiving?"

She smiled sweetly at that. The original idea in her head of him and the kids with her having a family Thanksgiving dinner together, eating food and talking, then watching "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" on TV, before letting the tryptophan take over for the night. It was a nice image in her head.

"Guys, let's eat. The food's ready and everyone is here. Let's go," Munch called out.

"What about the food David and I bought?" Liv asked.

"Put it away; we made a feast for you," he replied and the entire group gathered around the table.

Munch was right; it was a feast. The entire long table was packed with food. As people began taking their seats, Liv noticed that there were less chairs than people… three less, to be exact. "Guys, um… David and his kids need a place to sit."

Cragen looked around and got up from his spot, as well as Ken and Munch, who had been next to him. They moved around their place settings, so David sat next to Olivia, and his kids were by him. By the time they grabbed three extra chairs and place settings and set up the table, most everyone was crammed together.

Olivia noticed this and thought of something. "How about we put the kids at a separate table? I have one in my small storage room." She got up and went into her storage room and rolled out and large folding table and set it up not far from the main table. "So, Cory and Emily can sit here; Calvin, if you want to, you can sit here, Eli and Zara can sit here, too; they're old enough."

Cory and Emily got up and Olivia helped move their chairs and place settings to the other table. Calvin debated before moving all of his stuff on his own. Kathy got up and helped Eli over to the new table, while Nick helped set up Zara's new place. Everyone that remained at the big table were the adults and Simon's toddler, Olivia, in her highchair.

Once everyone was settled in, they passed around food to each other and to the kids table and prepared to eat. There was a turkey _and_ ham, sweet potato and pumpkin pies, real cranberry sauce – not the canned variety, yams with marshmallows and cranberries and raisins, a bowl of sweet corn and a large bowl of corn on the cob, mashed potatoes and gravy, and a large salad. Both the turkey and the ham were carved up and ready to serve. And, a variety of beverages were available; from beer and wine for the adults, milk and juice for the kids, and water and soda to anyone who wanted it.

Olivia was in a state of total bliss throughout the whole thing. What Cragen and Fin had done for her, setting up a whole family dinner… there was no way she could ever repay them for it. She got the perfect family Thanksgiving she had always dreamed of. And, to top it off, Elliot Stabler was present and they were talking randomly during the dinner, and she had David right next to her. During the whole dinner, they kept managing to touch each other in some sweet way; it was nice to have that contact again.

As the dinner was winding down, Cragen clinked on his glass of water and the room got quiet. "I want to say thank you for everyone who came here tonight… for Olivia to have this family Thanksgiving. Something we all know she absolutely deserves," he raised his glass to her. "Happy Thanksgiving, Olivia."

"Happy Thanksgiving," the room chorused.

"Thank you, guys… so much," she replied and glanced at the man next to her, holding her hand under the table. _Yeah, total bliss_. As Cragen took his seat, Olivia stood up, never letting go of David's hand. "I want to say thank you… to all of you. This…," she got emotional and tears came to her eyes. "It means everything to me. For those of you who know me, know how much it means. For those of you who don't… I've never really had a family growing up. My mother was too drunk to recognize the holidays; she usually used it as an excuse to drink more. She was the only family I ever had. Until, I found out about Simon. Our relationship needs work, but I do have a family to call my own. And, a very beautiful niece with my name. I can't ask for more than that. I love getting to know all of you that I don't know." Olivia looked over at Amanda and her family. "Amanda has become, like, a little sister to me. For many years, I have been the only female in the SVU until she came along. Yeah, sure, being the youngest, in this group, had its advantages and disadvantages, but I'm glad to now have someone younger than me. She's a great detective and a wonderful person." Olivia looked at Nick. "Nick, I know we've had issues recently with trust. But, you're my partner and I know we're going to have issues here and there; we just have to deal with them a little differently. I do trust you as my partner; you saved my life. You're a great man and a great father. Zara's a lucky little girl."

She looked at Alex. "Alex, you are my female best friend and the most amazing and strongest woman I know." Liv turned to Casey and her look-alike sister. "And, Casey… I know I didn't like you when we first met, but you are now one of my closest friends and like a sister, or a cousin to me." She looked at Melinda and her family. "Melinda, you have been like an honorary mother or aunt to me. I love you with all my heart and don't know what I… what we would have done if we had lost you when you were shot a few years ago. It isn't just that your family would lose the best wife and mother in the world, but we would have lost the best medical examiner and friend. You are my family…" Olivia let go of David's hand to turn and face Ken and Fin. "Since Elliot left and stopped being my partner, Ken… your father has been my rock. Always looking out for me and being my go-to. He and I… we've been through a lot… to a literal Hell and back. While Elliot was my primary partner and my Number One, and while Nick is my current partner…, Fin, you and I share something no one can understand. Nick may have saved my life, last year, and made sure I didn't get killed, but _you _saved more than just my life. You mean more to me than you know." Olivia stopped and wiped tears from her eyes.

Fin set his glass down and stood up and moved to hug her. "You're my Baby-Girl; I'd do anything for you," he softly spoke in her ear.

Olivia smiled and let go. "Thank you." She let him take his seat before addressing John Munch. "And, you… My brother; my friend. There are times when I can't stand your conspiracies and there are times when I'm glad I'm not your partner, but I don't know what I'd do without you in my life."

"Here, here," Fin commented and nodded his glass in Munch's direction. He knew, as Munch's partner, what he was like with those conspiracy theories. But, life wouldn't be any fun without the man next to him.

Olivia faced her Captain and smiled. "I… don't know where to begin. You are my boss, you are my friend… and you've been like a father to me for fourteen years. I never knew that feeling until spending a few years in the SVU with you. When you weren't here… at work, before, I felt lost. I know, eventually, we all have to move from this job or get promoted or retire… but I need you in my life."

"I don't see myself going anywhere right now, so you're okay," Cragen stated and took a sip of his water, while Olivia moved to stand by Calvin.

She looked down at him. "Calvin… you are my honorary son and I am so happy that you are spending this holiday with me. You have no idea how happy I am. I know you're growing up and you're a typical teenager now, but you're still that boy that was left in my care two years ago. You once told me that you signed your name with 'Benson' at the end because I rescued you, but you rescued me. You gave me a sense of family for a little while. I wanted a family and you inadvertently gave me that. And, I still love you like a son. No matter where you live, who you live with, or how old you get, I still love you. Understand?"

Calvin stood up and hugged the woman who had been his temporary mother two years ago. "Yeah. Love you, too," he mumbled muttered into her shoulder and sat back down.

Olivia went back to stand by her seat and faced Elliot and his whole family. "I don't even know where to begin with you. There is so much I want to say… I don't where to start. I just miss you… as my partner, and my best friend. For twelve years, you were my life. You were one stable thing in my world, Stabler. I really, really want us to be friends again."

"I want that, too, Liv. We can talk later," Elliot replied.

She looked at each member of his family. "And, you guys, don't be strangers with me. I've watched you guys grow up into the people you are today. Maureen, I remember when I first met you… you were a typical teenager; Bratty and Ms. Attitude. You are a beautiful and sophisticated woman today. Kathleen, I remember you as the quiet little preteen kid who eventually developed into a troubled young woman… and who eventually became an activist when it came to college rape and sexual assault. You have dealt with a lot and come so far, and I can't wait to see what you will do with the rest of your life; I know it's going to be great. And, Dickie… from a smart young boy, to handsome young man. I still remember a few years ago, when we had that little issue… but, you've grown up and you look more and more like your father. Ms. Elizabeth, the quiet girl who never causes any troubles. The innocent good-girl."

"If you only knew," Dickie commented quietly.

Elizabeth turned to him and slapped him in the chest. "Shut up, _Dickie_."

Olivia laughed. "So, you have a not-so-nice side, huh, Lizzie?"

"No, he's just being stupid, is all."

"Okay," Olivia laughed and looked at Bernie. "You know, I know we talked about this before, but Elliot never talked about you or his childhood, because of what he went through with his dad and your… issues. But, when I met you, I liked you. Despite those issues, you tried to be a good mother to your son and a good grandmother to your kids. And, you showed me part of Elliot's childhood that he never talked about. I still remember the carrot costume."

Elliot's kids audibly cracked up at that, while other snickered and quietly laughed. Elliot blushed a little and tried to pass it off. "Okay, guys. It was part of my early childhood. We all have embarrassing moments with costumes our parents put us in."

The room quieted again and Olivia looked at Kathy. "You and I shared this man for twelve years. I know that sounds weird to a lot of people here, but it's the truth. While he was at work, he talked about you and the kids a lot. The things going on with their lives, the highlights and low points of domestic life. I could listen on and on when he talked about something cool the kids were doing. He was a proud father in those moments. When you guys had your problems, he didn't talk to me, at first. But, once I found out, I listened and was there for him. I'm happy you guys made up and had Eli. Elliot was so happy to be a new dad again."

Kathy and Elliot looked lovingly into each other's eyes and held hands. Olivia subconsciously mimicked the hand-holding with David. "I see what you two have now, and I want that so bad. That kind of love and family… it's a blessing, and on this particular holiday… it's the number one thing to be thankful for. I want that," she said and squeezed David's hand, before looking down at him and smiling. "David…," she started, but leaned down and kissed him softly on the lips.

David moved to pull her into his lap as their kiss ended. "Yes, babe?"

Liv smiled. "I want us to be together again. I want us to have our own version of a family," she told him and kissed him again.

The crowd around just stared. Olivia was never this public about her personal life, or her love life. It was surprising to see a public display of affection from her.

"I want us to be a family, too, Livvy," David responded, calling her by the pet name he had used when they were dating before." The two started making out again.

Cragen called out, "Happy Thanksgiving, Olivia," and everyone followed suit. He was happy for her, even though she was with their former EADA. Olivia was happy and finally in a good place in her life.

The rest of the night consisted of people talking and beginning to depart. The kids, and some of the adults, got into watching "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" when it came on. By 8:30 PM, Alex, Casey and her sister, Amanda and her family, and Melinda and hers had gone.

Olivia got up and went to the door to see off the others. She hugged Munch before he left, and Ken. The hug between Liv and Fin went on for a while. Then Cragen hugged her and left, but not before telling to take off Thursday and be back to work on Friday morning. Nick got Zara ready and he and his mother headed for the door.

"Thanks, Olivia. You're one of the best partners I've had in years. I do trust you, you know?" he told her.

"I know. Happy Thanksgiving." She hugged him.

"Happy Thanksgiving," he replied and he ushered his family out the door.

Simon, holding a sleepy little Olivia in his arms, was next. "Thanks for a wonderful Thanksgiving, Olivia."

"You're welcome, but it wasn't my idea. But, thank you for coming. I want us to work on our relationship and I want to be a part of my niece's life. You need to get things together with Tracy, okay? I know she's been causing problems, but Olivia is your daughter, too. For her sake, work things out," Liv explained. "That's some sisterly advice for you."

"I'm trying, Liv; I really am. She's just being difficult sometimes. I want to have a stable family thing with my daughter and with you. You're the only family I have, and you're the best big sister ever," Simon replied. "Good night."

They didn't want to hug each other for fear that they'd wake up little Olivia and just decided on touching each other's arms, before Simon headed out.

The Stabler family had all hugged Olivia before stepping outside her door, leaving Elliot behind. "So, maybe we can have coffee or lunch sometime and talk," Elliot suggested.

Liv smiled and hugged him. "I'd like that. I miss you, Elliot. Separation is good every once and awhile, but not a year and a half's worth."

"I agree. I miss you, too. I'm sorry for not talking to you after what happened. It was… complicated. Maybe at lunch or coffee, I can explain it to you. It's late and Eli's tired and the tryptophan is starting to kick in," Elliot responded.

"Be careful driving home, okay?"

"I will." He looked in the direction of David's kids and Calvin all sacked out on the floor in front of the TV and David, cleaning up the tables. "Have fun with the family."

Olivia laughed softly. "Good night, El," she stated and closed door and locked it.

After dinner, some had helped putting some of the food away in her fridge, along with the food she and David had purchased. The only thing that remained was some empty dishes and dirty plates. Liv approached David, who was picking up plates from the table.

"Just put the dishes in the dishwasher for now. Whatever can't fit, can stay in the sink for now; I'm tired and I want to move these tables and chairs, so my sofa can be returned. Maybe one of the kids can sleep there. I do have two air mattresses they can use," she explained.

"No problem," he answered, clearly tired.

The pair cleared the table and set the dishes in the dishwasher and turned it on; the stuff that wouldn't fit was put into the sink with hot water and soap. The long table separated into parts and folded up and was set into Liv's storage room, along with the smaller table. The chairs were wooden and she set them aside for tomorrow. The coffee table, comfy chairs, and sofa had been pushed up against the wall, so she and David moved them to their original position, trying to avoid disturbing the sleeping children.

The got the air mattresses set up and David took his daughter's shoes off and set her on one mattress and covered her with a small throw blanket and set one of Olivia's decorative pillows under the child's head. He copied the move with his son on the other mattress, while Liv managed to take off Calvin's shoes and hoodie and set him up on the sofa with a pillow and blanket, all without waking the teenager.

When they had accomplished that exhausting task, the pair moved into Liv's bedroom and got ready for bed. "So, when do Cory and Emily have to go with their mother tomorrow?"

"I told my ex she could come pick them up tomorrow before noon. Their stuff is in the trunk of my car, so I have to go get it before she arrives. What about Calvin?" David inquired as he stripped down to his short and a t-shirt.

"I don't know. We never talked about it, and Cragen never told me how he managed to get Calvin here. I'll ask tomorrow," she replied and took off the rest of her clothes before dressing in a pair of loose gray yoga pants that had a couple holes in them, and a fitted blue tank-top. She rubbed lotion onto her hands, arms and face before climbing under the covers.

David moved onto the bed, under the covers and waited for Olivia to snuggle in before settling in completely. "I like this, Liv. It's like being a family together."

She smiled sleepily. "I like it, too. Happy Thanksgiving, David."

"Happy Thanksgiving, Livvy."

**END NOTE: DESPITE THE NAMES OF DAVID'S KIDS AND THEIR AGES BEING PRETTY MUCH THE SAME, THIS HAS NO CONNECTION TO MY "HAPPY HALLOWEEN!" STORY. IT'S A SEPARATE PIECE.**

**ALSO, I KNOW THAT PART OF THIS IS UNCHARACTERISTIC AND DOESN'T SEEM LIKE THE MORE REALISITIC STUFF THAT I WRITE, BUT IT'S A THANKSGIVING FAMILY STORY. I DON'T CARE; I WANTED TO BE A LITTLE FLUFFY FOR A MOMENT.**

**HAPPY THANKSGIVING!**


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